Frayed Conceptions
by penny4apadfoot
Summary: Harry is kidnapped by Death Eaters, will he give in to protect those he loves or will he choose a much darker path? HPGW RWHG
1. Chapter 1

Frayed Conceptions 

Harry is kidnapped by Death Eaters, will he give in to protect those he loves or will he choose a much darker path? HPGW RWHG

**Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter and never will.**

Harry woke up staring at the dark ceiling of his tiny room in Number 4 Privet Drive. It was his birthday today. Harry could scarcely believe it; today he was finally coming of age! He could threaten Uncle Vernon and actually carry through with the threat of magic without being expelled! Emerald eyes glistened mischievously at the thought as he hoisted himself out of bed and headed to the bathroom to get washed up. The cool feel of the water against his skin made him shiver as he damped his face with the flannel, closing his eyes he thought of all the things that had happened in the past year; Sirius, his godfather, finally being freed of all charges as Pettigrew was found and put under verisaterum, proving Sirius' innocence which immediately condemned Peter straight to Azkaban. Harry frowned into the towel however as soon after this, Azkaban had been raided and taken over by Lord Voldemort, and Pettigrew, together with Voldemorts more faithful death eaters escaped.

It was quite clear to Harry that the final battle was approaching, and that it would probably be in this school year that he challenged Voldemort face to face, and in Harry's opinion the year was coming far too fast, he was no way near ready to fight Voldemort! Harry had been imagining so many different scenarios that could happen between the two of them and none had a happy ending. Most involved Harry having to watch all his friends get murdered in front of him or he would get impaled on a knife and bleed slowly to death while watching Voldemort murder his friends; in fact most ended with the murder of Harry's friends, and Ginny. Dearest Ginny.

Ginny and Harry had been involved for about two years now and no amount of words could describe how he felt about her, she always seemed to know what to say to cheer him up and even the slightest touch could calm him. Harry smiled to himself as he thought of her; Her beautiful red hair cascading down her back as she smiled at him. The smile that seemed to light up the room whenever she looked at him, her warm brown eyes shining out from her porcelain skin, sprinkled with freckles. Harry could never get enough of her, when they first started going out he used to just sit in the common room and watch her as she talked to her friends. He felt his heart swell whenever she glanced his way and their eyes caught. Harry knew from that first moment in the common room that he would be content just to watch her forever.

Slowly Harry padded back into his room, careful not to step too loudly in case of waking the Dursley's. That Harry knew from experience would not be a good thing to do. As he entered, Harry saw Hedwig perched on the cage and almost burst out laughing at the sight of her, she had letters and parcels tied all over her; she did not look pleased!

"Hey Hedwig, have you got something for me?"

Hedwig just ruffled her feathers and looked very indignant towards him making Harry chuckle

"Alright, alright I'll take them off! Now hold still"

One by one the parcels and letters came off making Hedwig look very bare all of a sudden, as she swooped down to her cage and gulped down some much needed water. Smiling to himself Harry turned to the first letter and opened it.

_Hey Harry!_

_So you're finally joining the rest of the grown – ups then eh mate? Took you long enough, but HAPPY BIRTHDAY! Hope you have a good one and the filthy muggles don't get you down too much! Listen I wanted to have you over this summer but apparently mum says you're going someplace else but refused to tell me where! Where are you going? _

Harry frowned at this, he was going somewhere? Well this was new to him! As Mrs Weasley knows about it it can't be too bad he thought, maybe it was some kind of surprise? He was of age now after all that counts as a special birthday doesn't it?

_Anyway you have to tell me what 'Mione got you as she's been boasting how much you'll like it for weeks! I think they're all ganging up on me at the moment; no one tells me anything! I swear the world is against me! But you will won't you mate? Promise? Knew I could count on you!_

Harry couldn't help but smile at Ron sometimes; he could just picture his face smiling smugly at his assumption that Harry would tell him anything. Harry had half a mind to write back saying he wouldn't just to be able to see his face when he read it. However given that Harry wouldn't be able to see Ron's face because he was miles away it wouldn't really achieve anything so Harry lowered his eyes and kept reading

_Well Fred and George are being just as annoying as they always have been, they've gotten even more serious about their 'Weasley's Wizarding Wheezes' now that the war's getting closer. They say they can use their pranks to get the upper hand on the enemy. Fred keeps yelling all the time 'bout how Malfoy would never expect to get a stink bomb in the face – mum wasn't too pleased by that suggestion. She's actually getting into their joke shop though – probably realised the more she objects to it, the more they'll do it but oh well! Mums never learn eh mate? Mind you she finally caved and Fred and George are now proud members of the order. I asked if I could join too but NO apparently I'm still a toddler in her eyes! grr_

_Anyway I'd better go as Ginny's nagging me for the parchment that I happen to be leaning on…whoops! But before I go happy birthday again!_

_Hope to see you soon mate! Maybe Diagon Alley?_

_Ron_

Harry smiled then turned to look at the small very messily wrapped gift. He tore off the paper and his eyes widened to almost twice their normal size; sitting in his hand was an extremely beautiful golden snitch!

_PS. Can't have you losing to Malfoy in our last year now can we! Now get practising!_

Harry could scarcely believe it! His own snitch! Suddenly the golden wings started to twitch and Harry had to clamp his hand over it before he had to start playing seeker in his own bedroom. That would definitely not go down well with Aunt Petunia if he started jumping round the room trying to catch a golden snitch! Still completely amazed that Ron would spend that much money on him Harry slowly turned to the next letter, Hermione.

_Dear Harry,_

_How are you? I miss you! HAPPY BIRTHDAY! Hope your Aunt and Uncle are treating you well, are you going to keep staying with them do you know or will you move in with Sirius or something? I still can't believe it – Sirius is free! I bet he's relieved he doesn't have to pretend to be a stray dog anymore that must have been ghastly! Bur enough of that! _

_What are you going to do for your birthday then Harry? Ron mentioned something about you not being able to go and stay with him? Have you fallen out? I know Ron can be a bit silly sometimes Harry but you just have to put up with him and he'll get better! He usually does anyway…_

Harry snorted, if he had gotten a galleon every time he'd seen Ron and Hermione bickering, he'd be the richest man alive right now!

_I've just got back from Rome actually, it's truly amazing Harry! All the ruins and the theatres it's just bursting with history! Did you know that one of the things that the Romans are most famous for is their architecture? Apparently the Romans brought loads of new ideas and there were three really important ones that are called arch, the baked brick and the use of cement and concrete! Around 700 BC the Etruscans learned West Asian ideas about architecture, and they taught these ideas to the Romans. There wasn't much Etruscan architecture left, but a lot of their underground tombs were still there and even some traces of the temples…._

Harry had to seriously resist the urge to roll his eyes at Hermione's enthusiasm at the most boring subjects ever; he quickly skimmed the rest of the paragraph and started reading again near the end

_Isn't it all so fascinating Harry? Ron says I'm being boring but it's culture Harry! So much can be learned from our surroundings!_

_I guess if I don't see you before September 1st I'll see you on the Hogwarts express for another action packed year! About that, have you been getting the _Daily Prophet_ recently? The attacks are getting worse, promise me you'll be careful Harry? Don't wander off by yourself okay?_

_See you soon_

_Hermione_

Harry hadn't been getting the _Daily Prophet_ but he was sure he could predict what was being written. All it seemed to report at the end of his last year was how the attacks were getting worse and more often day by day, they also seemed to like insulting him by saying that he was taking too much time and that he was letting innocent people die but then that was nothing new. It seemed to be the paper's favourite topic as they could no longer claim that he was insane as they had Pettigrew had been questioned and revealed his involvement of raising Voldemort in Harry's fourth year. This combined with the raid of Azkaban gave the Wizengamot enough proof that Voldemort was indeed back. So seeing as they could no longer say Harry was insane they seemed to have taken over with the accusation that Harry was turning dark as no hero would let the amount of people die that have already.

Turning his attention to Hermione's present he carefully unwrapped it, noting how much neater it was than Ron's. There sitting in front of him was '_A Guide To Expert Flying_' by Hilda Hornstack. Harry grinned, inside was loads of tricks and manoeuvre's that you see only in World Cups like the Wronskei Feint!

"Wow 'Mione" Harry whispered in awe, this was going to be one hell of a quidditch match now. He had his own snitch to practise with and he was going to pull so many tricks, Malfoy wasn't going to know what hit him!

Harry was distracted momentarily as Hedwig flew over and nipped him on the finger egging him on to finish with his presents, which she had taken the trouble over bringing to him on time.

"Impatient old girl aren't you Hedwig?" Harry chuckled; Hedwig gave a very regal hoot in response and kept glaring at him until he opened the next letter.

_Good Morning Sunshine,_

_Happy Birthday! Now that Ron has finally gotten off the parchment I can write to you! I miss you. You've all grown up now and I'm the only one left who still can't do magic outside of Hogwarts! Trust me NO ONE is letting me forget that! I hate my brothers sometimes I really do but I do believe we should be talking about the birthday boy! How is my ravishingly handsome boyfriend? And stop blushing Mr Potter, I can see straight through you._

_Just imagine you can leave those ghastly Dursley's whenever you want now! But please don't Harry, Tom is getting closer all the time and I'm not losing you so please use your head Harry! I swear if something happens because you weren't taking the right precautions I promise you I will bring you back just so I can murder you myself clear? Good._

_I'm going to have to cut this short as I'm being called down for dinner_

_I love you and I miss you_

_Ginny_

'I love you and I miss you' Harry couldn't keep the grin off his face at those words as he re-read them for the third time. Looking over to the small box attached to the letter, his breath caught, what would Ginny have given him? He slowly took off the ribbon and opened the box and promptly gasped. Inside was a silver chain bracelet; upon closer inspection he could see the words 'HP and GW forever' engraved on the inside. The smile on his face threatened to split his face as he fastened it around the wrist and read the note beneath

_Harry – This bracelet has protection charms on it, remember our family clock?_

_Well it works kind of like that I suppose so whenever you're in trouble I'll know and then I can kick your arse for worrying me alright? Oh and by the way, maybe if you're good I'll let you unwrap your real present when we get to Hogwarts……._

Blushing furiously Harry quickly hid the parchment for his own peace of mind; he didn't want Dudley thinking that he needed protection all the time, not that he minded particularly if it was coming from Ginny. He quickly turned to the last letter as he heard Uncle Vernon and Aunt Petunia heading downstairs and thus knew he would be called on very soon to make 'Duddiekins' breakfast.

_Harry,_

_HAPPY BIRTHDAY! How is my little Prongslet on this fine morning? Me and moony are fine, I'm relishing in being able to go wherever I want without the threat of the ministry hanging over me which is always a bonus wouldn't you say? So yes life is good this side of the fence._

_Are the muggles treating you right? I swear if they aren't Harry just say the word and I will gladly come and pulverise them into dung! On the topic of dung, there's still no sign of the rat, he seems to be keeping a low profile unlike the rest of them._

_Moony's annoying me now as he wants to say something but make sure your trunk is packed by 3.00pm this afternoon as you may be receiving a special visitor…_

_**Don't forget to keep an eye out for anything peculiar or out of place Harry and report anything unusual to Dumbledore, or us we can't take any chances now that the war is so close. Happy Birthday and I shall be seeing you very soon I expect. **_

_Sirius **and Remus**_

'Why do people always tell me to be careful' Harry angrily thought to himself as he folded the letter back up 'it's not like I welcome death eaters to come and kill me!' Nevertheless excitement bubbled up in his stomach at the thought of seeing Sirius again, glancing at the clock he saw it was about half past nine. Harry closed his eyes 'just five and a half hours to go' he said to himself as he unwrapped the small package from both Sirius and Remus. Staring back at him was a rather large silver key and next to it an extremely small one.

_Harry – The big key is the key to your new home that is if you want it, with me and moony. I completely understand if you don't want to, but we'd love to have you. The second small key is the key to the Potter vault. I know you already have one but this is a different one. This vault has all the paper's Lily and James kept. _**_What Padfoot is trying to say, very badly I might add, is that it contains the items your parents set down for you to receive once you were finally of age. I think it will probably be things like your birth certificate etc. but you never know with James._ **

Now Harry was properly excited! He was going to live with Remus and Sirius! He was leaving the Dursely's! This had to be the best birthday present ever! Topped only by his eleventh when he found out he was a wizard but this was brilliant! Then of course there was the Potter vault. He was finally going to have a proper connection to his parents! Not just a cloak and a few pictures that he had been given, he was going to see their most treasured possessions and family heirlooms! He could learn about his ancestors! That's what most people have in their vaults isn't it?

His train of thought was broken however by a large shout by his Uncle.

"BOY! GET DOWN HERE!" Harry sighed, 'here we go' he thought as he hastily stashed away all his presents and letters under the loose floorboard near his bed, he would pack everything up later after breakfast he decided as he traipsed down the sparkly clean staircase and into the kitchen.

"Make the breakfast" Vernon grunted as soon as he saw Harry, no happy birthday greeting like any other family would have, but then Uncle Vernon was certainly not a normal father figure. If one could even call him that.

"Yes Uncle Vernon" Harry said cheerily, nothing, not even Uncle Vernon could take away his good mood – it was his birthday, he was leaving the Dursely's and his girlfriend had told him she loved him! Life didn't get much better to Harry at that moment. So he started on breakfast with great enthusiasm much to the annoyance of his Uncle.

"What's wrong with you?" He grunted again

"Oh nothing! Nothing at all is the matter with me Uncle Vernon" but Vernon wasn't even listening as he had already gone back to reading his paper.

Just then Dudley came waddling in on his huge tree stumps some people call legs, carrying his Smeltings stick. He had a surprisingly menacing smirk on his face as he looked at Harry.

"Duddiekins!" Aunt Petunia shrieked as she saw him come in

"MUM! I thought I told you not to call me that! It's EMBARASSING!" Dudley roared "But I believe it's someone's birthday today isn't it mum?

Harry groaned inwardly, this could never be good

"Is it dear? Oh yes I'd quite forgotten! No matter" Aunt Petunia chirped before waving her hand dismissively and turning back to spying on the neighbours through the window

"I have a present for you Harry" Dudley sang merrily before ramming his smelting stick into Harry's legs making pain shoot up through him as he crumbled to the floor "Happy Birthday" Dudley smirked whilst Harry lay panting heavily trying to make the pain go away.

"Good one Dudders!" Vernon roared with laughter "That'll teach him! Well? What do you say boy?"

Harry had a lot he would have like to say to the whole lot of them but to his disgust, held back, gritted his teeth and forced out with great venom "Thank you Dudley"

"That's more like it!" Vernon roared once more patting Dudley on the back whose attention was now solely on eating his breakfast and seemed to have forgotten about everyone else's existence.

The rest of the day swept by without much trouble as Harry packed up his things and let Hedwig out, as he knew she would be able to find him wherever he was. Harry had also conveniently forgotten that he would be receiving a visitor at any moment, as the thought of Sirius Black turning up on their doorstep was too good to resist. The Dursely's had not been informed of Sirius' innocence either which would make the surprise even better, for Harry that is.

Harry was in the middle of imagining Vernon's face when he realised just who would be standing in his living room when the doorbell rang.

Harry jumped up, yelled into the kitchen "I'll get it!" as he ran down the stairs to the door. He stood behind the door for a split second to compose himself before he heaved the door open with a big smile on his face.

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Author's Note: This is my first fanfic so please review!


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2 – Frayed Conceptions **

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, as if I did I wouldn't be writing this.

Harry heaved the door open with a big smile on his face, however instead of seeing Sirius' smiling face looking back at him, he saw nothing. He glanced around the street trying to glimpse a tall man with long black hair, but still nothing.

Disappointed and confused, Harry went to close the door but suddenly found himself on the floor with a huge lump of fur, blinding his eyes and licking his face furiously, laughter bubbled through his throat as he was tickled by the dog's hot breath on his face.

"Get off me you mangy mutt!" Harry choked out, laughing. Throwing the dog off him Harry managed to sit up "Honestly Sirius!" For his part, the dog sat in front of him, tail swishing from side to side at an enormous speed.

"Who is it?" Petunia cried shrilly coming out of the kitchen, however seeing Sirius parading around her hall as a huge black dog, promptly made her drop the mug she was holding with a scream; the mug crashing to the floor.

"GET THAT _THING _OUT OF HERE THIS INSTANT!" Petunia screamed, however instead of scaring the dog, this just seemed to make his tail wag even more as he bounded towards Aunt Petunia, much to her horror, and leapt into the kitchen. Looking back Harry would always laugh at the commotion that erupted from that movement.

Vernon's tea went spilling all over the table and his paper went flying into the air at the sight of the black fur-ball, whereas Dudley, who had been in the middle of a mouthful of bacon, started to yelp, but this action made him start to choke as he gradually started to turn blue. Petunia shrieked as she tried to hit Dudley on the back trying to dislodge the slice of bacon trapped in the back of his throat. Vernon was trying desperately to kick the dog out of the house, his face getting more and more purple by the second.

It was here that Harry decided to intervene before the dog accidentally killed Dudley, indirectly of course. Harry ran up to Dudley wrapped his arms around Dudley's huge middle and then yanked his arms up and in forcing the bacon out of Dudley's throat where it flew through the air and landed on the wall, mere centimetre's from Vernon's head.

Sirius on the other hand, had decided that although causing so much havoc was fun, they needed to calm down, so very slowly he padded into the middle of the room, in clear view of all eyes and started to transform. Seeing a black dog start to shift shape and gradually turn into a human being was far too much for Aunt Petunia to take, hence her eyes rolled into the back of her head and she promptly fainted.

Vernon's face had gone from a very deep purple to being as pale as a ghost, as he watched the animal in front of him transform, however before he could form any coherent thoughts on the subject he was quickly assaulted by the large form of Dudley, shaking violently, running straight into him, as he tried to get out of the house as quickly as his fat legs would carry him.

"WHAT IN THE BLAZES IS GOING ON HERE!" Vernon yelled, starting to recover from the shock of seeing a huge black beast change shape and become a strangely familiar looking man before his very eyes.

"I would have thought it was rather obvious actually Vernon" the stranger said in a deathly calm voice. He then pointed his wand at Petunia's still unconscious form and said quietly "Enervate".

Petunia gasped as she woke up with a start, wondering suddenly why she was looking at the kitchen ceiling and not her bedroom ceiling, she looked around only to remember quite vividly the reason.

"Where did the black _thing_ go?" she asked shakily

"Ah, I believe that was me" a voice said and her attention was pulled from Vernon, who seemed to be breathing rather heavily to a rather familiar looking man, he had long black shaggy hair with piercingly ice blue eyes. His form was very slender, yet he had quite obvious muscle, starting to expand on his form. He also had an extremely dangerous look in his eyes that clearly stated to Petunia that he was not to be messed with.

"And who exactly might you _be?_" Vernon replied tersely, still reeling from the shock of the black lump that had mauled his kitchen turning out to be a man.

"Oh, I'm terribly sorry have I not introduced myself?" The man said, all hints of the danger in his eyes replaced with a mischievous glint, this was supported by a slight chuckle from behind him, and once Petunia had craned her neck round the stranger, she could see it was Harry. "My name is Sirius Black, I do believe we've met before".

Of what colour was left in Petunia and Vernon's faces quickly vanished and a very girl pitched shriek could be heard from upstairs. "The m-m-murderer?" Petunia choked out

"Murderer is such a strong word, but if you're trying to say am I the man responsible for your sister's death? Then yes I suppose I am" There was no emotion present in his voice, but Harry could tell through the haunted look, he got whenever he spoke of Harry's parents that it was costing him a lot to say this.

"You're on the run! We'll have you locked up for this!" Vernon roared regaining his voice magnificently

"Ah, that would be true had I not been cleared of all charges, I'm a free man. Now Harry why don't you go and get your things while the Dursely's and I _settle_ a few things out" If Harry didn't know Sirius so well, he would have been scared by the menace in Sirius' voice, nevertheless he didn't need telling twice, and quickly nodded his consent before exiting the room, skipping up the stairs and coming face to face with Dudley.

"Harry! Is that man really the murderer?" Dudley asked, his voice trembling. Harry realised then just how scared Dudley was of his godfather, an evil smile creeping onto his face as he thought just how he could use this to his advantage.

"He is no murderer" came the cold answer, but when Dudley started to look relieved, he quickly added "But he is my godfather, and with his temper, could easily become one" smirking at the look of horror on Dudley's face he quickly turned and started walking to his room.

"Oh Harry I didn't mean it this morning! The whole birthday present it was just a joke! You know that right?" He called nervously from behind. His only reply was a slam of the door as Harry went in to collect his things.

Looking round his room, Harry suddenly realised this would probably be the last time he entered it, as he was going to live with Sirius and Remus now and considering the battle was so close next summer he either wouldn't need the blood protection as Voldemort would be dead, or he himself would be dead. _How morbid_ he thought. But nothing could mistake the truthfulness of that statement. _This time next year I could be dead. In a couple of months I could be dead. Hell even tomorrow I could be dead! Face it Harry there's no way you're going to be able to defeat Voldemort! You won't even last ten seconds against him. Okay I have _got_ to stop thinking like this. _Snapping out of the trance he had just been in he quickly pulled out his wand muttered the minimising spell, with a slight thrill as it was the first time he 'd used magic at home, and put Hedwig's cage and trunk in his pocket.

Running back down the stairs, the sight that greeted him made his jaw drop. Sirius was standing there with an extremely satisfied smirk on his face, whilst staring at three very large frogs. One had a slight purple tinge to it, another had an extremely long neck for a frog and the other, well the other was just plain large.

"Sirius! Are they the _Dursely's_?" Harry asked incredulously

"Yep! They paint quite a picture don't they? You ready kiddo?"

"I-I think so. Will they be alright?"

"They'll be fine! Let's go then! Really is a foul house you know" Sirius said with a grin.

Stepping outside Sirius promptly grabbed Harry's arm and dragged him behind the house, saying quietly "Hold onto my arm tight now okay? I'm going to do a side apparition, seeing as you haven't done your test yet" Harry vaguely nodded too excited about leaving the Dursley's and trying to imprint that picture of the three frogs in his memory forever.

However this got kicked to the back of his mind as he suddenly felt the familiar sensation like he was being compressed from all sides, black dots started to invade his vision as his eyes felt like they were going to explode from the pressure, all his muscles started to go weak from the lack of oxygen he was receiving and just as his legs started to buckle, it all vanished. The dots receded into nothing and all his muscles jumped back into action.

"I am _never_ going to get used to that!" Harry sighed, and was greeted with a bark like laugh from his godfather.

"Well never mind, welcome to your new home Harry!" Sirius exclaimed excitedly. Harry looked up and gasped. He was standing in front of the most beautiful cottage he'd ever seen. It was quite small with red bricks and beams running through it, making it look very Victorian, there was a white fence surrounding the garden, which was so overgrown and wild that you could hardly see inside it. Aunt Petunia would have screamed if she saw it, but to Harry, it was perfect. "Do you like it?" a nervous voice asked him, as he hadn't said anything for quite a while, just simply staring with his mouth agape.

"Oh Sirius I love it! Thank you so much!" Harry jumped up and crushed Sirius with a huge bear hug "Where's Remus?" Harry said breathlessly once he'd let Sirius go.

"Inside I think, waiting for you" he said with a smile not in the least fazed by Harry's sudden outburst, as he watched him practically skipping down the path.

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Harry gradually came back from unconsciousness as he stared up into his room. It was a classic Gryffindor room, all the walls were painted in red and gold, with Quidditch posters covering all the walls, waving back at him, among these posters were pictures of all his friends laughing and joking. Remus had explained that Ginny and Hermione had been sending them photos for months before his birthday so they could prepare it for him, something that deeply touched Harry as he had never really encountered people that would spend so much time over him. His floor was scattered with books on '_How to become an Animagus_'. Harry grinned like a Cheshire cat from his massive four-poster at the thought, he hadn't yet even managed to transform but Remus and Sirius said he was well on the way to getting there. He could hardly wait!

It was the 30th August, one day before he was due to return to Hogwarts and he was planning to get the most out of Remus and Sirius as possible before he left, so crawling out of bed he quickly grabbed some clothes and headed down the stairs to the smell of bacon.

"Hey Moony!" he said as he came into the kitchen "How was last night?" Yesterday evening had been a full moon and so Remus and Sirius had succumbed to the forest behind the cottage, and as Harry had not yet finished his animagus transformation, he was not allowed to accompany them. A fact he detested with a vengeance.

"Tiring I'll say that much" Remus said with a smile "I no you want to come, honestly I do, it's just far too dangerous without your animgaus form, even with the wolfsbane potion. I can't risk it!"

"I know" Harry murmured gloomily. At that moment a very rumpled Sirius came padding into the room and muttered good morning with a grunt. Harry had learnt through experience in the past couple of weeks that it was best not to disturb his godfather when he was in this state, which was about every morning, so excusing himself he went quickly to the bathroom to wash up. On his way back however he heard something that made him stop.

"Do you know how dangerous that could be? What if you're seen! And worse what if you're seen by death eaters! Padfoot you know that finding you and Harry unguarded flying through the sky would be the ultimate prize  
for them! I can't allow it!"

"Moony! It's not as if were gonna light up a beacon saying 'Boy-who-Lived here!' are we? We'll have the invisibility icon on! No  
one will see!"

"Sirius this is Harry's _life_ you're gambling!" Harry eyebrows shot up at this and strained his ears to hear better

"I'm well aware of the consequences Remus but don't you see? Harry won't even have a life if he can't get some fun once in a while! It'll be good for him, plus we're aware of the risks - we'll be careful!" Sirius whined, "Harry has hardly had any fun in his life, and -" his voice dropping so Harry could hardly hear it "who knows how long he's got left, I believe in him 100, don't get me wrong, I know he can do it but he deserves to live life to the full! Just in case. His life's been dictated by that damn prophecy for too long moony!"

"I see your point I really do Padfoot but...it's just such a risk, wouldn't it be easier to go on the Hogwarts express?"

"NO! this is my treat and I want it to be fun. Plus think about this logically Moony, who is the bigger target, me and Harry flying _invisibly_ through the sky, or a well known train ploughing through the countryside with hundreds of children on board? One of which is suspected to be the Boy-who-lived! How would they even find out anyway? Only you and me know!"

"Oh fine! But it's on your head Sirius Black!"

"Thank you Moony!"

Sensing this was a good time to stop eavesdropping Harry came back into the kitchen pondering over what he had just heard. He was _flying_ to Hogwarts? Cool!

The rest of the day passed by extremely quickly, and was filled with playing Quidditch, laughing, playing wizards chess and laughing a whole lot more. For the first time in Harry's life, he actually didn't want to go back to Hogwarts, living with Sirius and Remus had been so much more fun than he ever would have expected and they had been so supportive whenever he got depressed about the prophecy, he couldn't quite fathom how much he was going to miss them.

"Wake up Harry! I have a surprise for you!" Harry groaned

"Sod off!" He mumbled into the pillow

"Ok that's it, you asked for it!" Harry shrieked as a bucketful of ice-cold water came gushing over his head

"What the hell was that for!" He screamed as Sirius

"What?" Sirius said very innocently "You weren't getting up. Now come on we need to leave if you want to get to Hogwarts on time and I have a special surprise for you! Now hurry up!" with that, Sirius bounded out of the room, leaving Harry very excited, as he knew from having overheard the conversation yesterday that he would be flying to Hogwarts, he only hoped that he would have a better landing than the last time he had flown, as he had crash-landed into the Whomping Willow with Ron. An incident he would be very happy to avoid again.

Once he was up, dressed and washed he dashed into the garden where Sirius was waiting for him with a huge grin on his face, but stopped short at what he was standing in front of. It was gleaming, beautifully polished motorbike.

"Meet Gloria! Isn't she beautiful?" Sirius sounded like a giddy schoolboy who'd just won a new play-station or something "Hagrid gave her back to me last week, seeing as how I'd been freed and all. Do you like her?"

"Sirius, she's gorgeous!" Harry exclaimed "Are we flying to Hogwarts on her?"

"Yep! Wait, how did you know that?"

"Oh, I just heard you say something about flying, but I never dreamed it would be on this! Wow!" Sirius grinned

"I shall see you at Christmas Harry ok?" Remus said as he came out the cottage to say goodbye, turning to Sirius "remember what we talked about? Be careful! And for Merlin's sake don't let yourself be seen"

"I know, I know, now hurry up and give Harry a hug so we can go" It was quite clear to everyone that Sirius was just itching to go for a ride, so Harry gave Remus a huge bear hug, exchanged a few parting phrases, minimised his trunk and Hedwig's cage before stuffing them in his pocket and hopped on the bike behind Sirius.

"Hold on tight Harry!" Sirius pressed the invisibility icon and they shimmered into nothing. Harry waved at Remus as the motor started running but as they were invisible Remus couldn't see so he quickly gave up and wrapped his arms around Sirius' waist.

"Here we go!" Sirius shouted above the engine, as it started hurtling forward down their cottage path and very gradually rose like an airplane until they were way above the clouds.

Harry sighed with contentment as the clouds around them formed a blanket over the earth so they couldn't see beneath them. The familiar feeling of belonging filled him as they travelled along the skyline. The wind whipping his face as Sirius pressed down hard on the accelerator, his hair flying into Harry's face as it had come out of its messy ponytail, not that Harry minded much. Hours went by as they flew, content with the silence that had covered them, splintered only by the purring of the engine. Harry eventually found his eyelids beginning to close as they continued, the gentle vibrate of the seat as they moved and the gentle brush of wind sending him to sleep.

When he woke, it appeared they were descending as he could just see the outline of turrets signalling that Hogwarts was near. However as they got closer, Harry noticed he could see lots of people running around, at first glance he thought it must be students but looking at his watch, it was time they should be in the great hall for the sorting. Upon closer inspection as they touched ground he could see that in fact they were aurors! _What the hell are aurors doing here? _He thought.

It seemed that Sirius was thinking along the same lines as Harry because as he came to a stop and turned off the invisibility icon he said "Leave your trunk and stuff with me Harry, and go straight to the sorting. I'm gonna find out what the hell is going on" and with that he quickly took the miniature trunk and owl cage from Harry's pocket and strode off to find Dumbledore, leaving Harry alone.

Still utterly confused and getting slightly more worried with every step he took he quickly made his way to the great hall. Opening the doors, he was shocked at the sight People were bleeding all over the place, Madam Pomphrey, it seemed had set up shop in the great hall and there were unconscious students on stretchers everywhere!

Completely panicked, Harry scanned the crowd for any red or brown bushy hair, and finally, he spotted a red head over in one corner, running as fast he could he dashed over to them.

Spotting him Hermione yelped "Oh Harry! You're okay we were so worried! Dumbledore said you weren't coming on the express but we didn't know if they'd got to you! Thank Merlin you're alright!" she literally flew into his shoulder as she gave him a fierce hug

"Will someone please tell me what's going on!" he yelled looking wildly around suddenly he noticed '_hang on'_– "Where's Ginny?"

Ron made a strangled sort of choking noise as he went even paler at this statement.

"Oh Harry! It's the express! It was attacked! Thankfully no one was killed but th -they" she stammered as Harry's heart started thumping so hard he thought his chest would break as he dreaded what she was going to say next

"Oh H-H-Harry! They took Ginny!"

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Author Note: No, the summary is not wrong, Harry is taken – all will be revealed soon! Thank you very much to my beta 'Whatapotter!' Please review! I need them!


	3. Chapter 3

Harry's whole body went numb. His blood turned to ice in his veins

'Would you mind saying that again please, Hermione?' Harry said in a deathly quiet voice. Maybe this was just a big joke, a completely cruel one, but there's still a chance...

'Ginny's gone Harry, they took her.' Hermione said again, still shaking uncontrollably. Beside her Ron's eyes had lost all focus, and the twins no longer had their mischievous grins. Instead they sported haunted looks, rather like Sirius when thinking of Azkaban. Harry became fairly confident that this was certainly no joke.

'J-j-just take me through what happened!' Harry stuttered, his need to understand what exactly had happened to her becoming overpowering.

'I don't know exactly.' Hermione's small voice came out.

'YOU DON'T KNOW? HOW CAN YOU POSSIBLY NOT KNOW?' He started yelling.

'Calm down! Calm down! Look the train suddenly stopped, just like in Third year, remember?' With a very small nod from Harry she continued. 'Well we didn't know what was going on, but then Malfoy came in boasting about how Harry was going to die, and then got really annoyed because you weren't there. Naturally we didn't think much of it because, well, it's Malfoy - it's what he does. So Ron managed to throw him out but when the compartment door opened we heard loads of screams. Death Eaters were everywhere! They were putting _imperio_ on loads of first years and making them beat each other up. It was horrible.' Hermione sniffed, her voice starting to get more steady as she went on. 'When they realised you weren't on the train they were furious, and Neville overheard one of them saying that if they couldn't have you, then they would have to hurt you in the worst way possible - through someone else. And well...Harry everyone knows how close you are to Ginny, we knew she was the obvious choice. We tried to protect her, Harry, we really did! There were just so many of them and they were all so strong!' Hermione's voice was now getting shriller by the second. 'They knocked us all unconscious and when we woke up we were here, and Ginny was gone. I'm so sorry Harry.'

Harry was shaking by the time she had finished. 'No, Hermione, it wasn't your fault, it was mine. I should have gone on the train and then she wouldn't have been taken. I shouldn't have ridden with Sirius'.

As if on cue, a very pale Sirius came up behind him. 'Never say that Harry! If you had gone on that train you could well be dead by now! I'm really sorry about Ginny though, are you alright?'

None of the Weasley's even reacted - they were still in some kind of trance.

'We'll get her back, I promise you,' Sirius started 'I've just had a word with Dumbledore and he's got the whole Order looking for her.'

Hope suddenly filled Ron and the rest of the Weasley's eyes at these words, but they still could not bring themselves to say anything. The memories of Ginny's first year at Hogwarts was still too prominent in their heads.

'That's not good enough,' Harry said quietly. Calm had filled his body. He knew he had to get her back, and now he knew exactly how to do it. 'The Order won't find her Sirius, you know that, not if Voldemort doesn't want her to be found.' Looking at Sirius' confused gaze, Harry started walking towards the Great Hall doors, determination and fury etched into every line of this body. Comprehension suddenly dawned on Hermione and Sirius as they rushed after him.

Harry headed straight through the hallway and towards the entrance. 'She's not dead, she's not dead,' Harry chanted to himself as he walked, the only thing stopping him from breaking down. He stalked through the entrance doors out into the grounds. Most of the students now following him as they realised what he might do. He could hear Sirius shouting at him to stop and felt his hand grab Harry's arm, but he shook it off angrily.

'TOM! TOM! I'M HERE ALL RIGHT - YOU WIN! COME AND GET ME!' Harry screamed at the top of his lungs. The entire school was running behind him, desperate to see what was going to happen. 'TOM!' He yelled again, desperation creeping into his voice.

'Why, Harry, did you call for me?' came a very cold and dangerous voice to his right. Harry whirled around and there stood Lord Voldemort, dressed in complete black robes with his blood red eyes gleaming out from inside his hood. About fifteen Death Eaters surrounding him. With a wave of his wand he conjured a barrier between Harry and the rest of the school, including Dumbledore who had just managed to push himself to the front accompanied by most of the staff.

'I'm offering you a trade; me for Ginny.' Harry stated, his voice steady, not reflecting the terror inside him.

'NO, HARRY, DON'T DO IT.' He could hear Sirius screaming. Through the corner of his eye he could see Hermione sobbing, while Ron looked utterly desolate, not sure to be hopeful for the return of his sister or distraught by the sacrifice of his brother in all but blood. Dumbledore could be seen chanting with his hands on the magical barrier, working furiously to bring it down.

Voldemort stared at him for a couple of minutes before slowly opening his mouth...Harry closed his eyes waiting for the two magical words, 'Avada Kedavra' with which his soul would be stripped from his body. The words Voldemort said were quite different, however no less chilling.

'Bring the girl.' Relief flooded through Harry and he thought he might faint from it - he would see Ginny again! She would be alright! He noticed a Death Eater nod his head slightly, and walk to the perimeter before apparating away.

Silence ensued as everyone waited for Ginny...not knowing whether she was alive or dead.

'Very brave of you dear Harry. You must like her a lot, giving yourself up to me. I promise you'll have a good time!' Voldemort grinned maniacally before throwing his head back and laughing.

The seconds ticked by until there was a loud CRACK and the Death Eater reappeared with his dear Ginny in a death grip. She had tears all down her face and her right arm looked broken, but other than that she looked relatively unharmed.

'Now, Harry, no-one need get hurt if you surrender yourself to me now. I promise I'll make your death quick. Just grab my hand and I'll take you _home,_' Voldemort said very silkily, the word 'home' sounding so out of place and disturbing, before lifting his stark white hand up into the light and holding it out for Harry.

Harry looked once more at Sirius, screaming through the barrier. Then he looked at Ginny's eyes, widened with fear, while she shook her head at him pleading him not to do it. What choice did he have? Taking a deep breath, Harry closed his eyes, turned his head away and grasped Lord Voldemort's outstretched hand firmly in his.

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Author Note: I am SOO sorry! I know it's been what 6 months since my last update?


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